Takeru Kobayashi was a six-time defending champion. Joey Chestnut was a little-known but promising upstart.
Kobayashi had been unbeatable for years going into the 2007 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest. But when the race to eat as many hot dogs and buns as possible was over, Chestnut had eaten 66 compared to Kobayashi’s 63.
David had eaten more than Goliath.
In the 17 years since, Chestnut has turned into the Goliath of professional eating, winning the Nathan’s hot dog-eating contest 16 of the last 17 competitions. Major League Eating, the governing body for numerous competitive eating contests, has crowned him “the greatest eater in history.” According to MLE’s profile of Chestnut, he holds 55 world records for eating a wide range of food.
But as it stands, Chestnut won’t even be at Coney Island on the Fourth of July to defend his title and try to win his 17th Mustard Belt. On Tuesday, the MLE said that Chestnut won’t be allowed to compete in the Nathan’s Famous contest because he had signed an endorsement deal with a rival hot dog maker — plant-based company Impossible Foods. The news rocked the world of competitive eating because, like hot dogs and buns, Chestnut and the Nathan’s Famous contest have become intertwined as part of each other’s identity.
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“I think it’s a shame that Joey will not be there,” George Shea, co-founder of Major League Eating and the longtime emcee of the Nathan’s contest, told The Washington Post. Shea said that he hopes an agreement can be reached that would allow Chestnut to eat at this year’s competition.
That possibility dimmed Wednesday afternoon when Netflix announced it will air a hot dog-eating contest on Sept. 2 in which Chestnut and Kobayashi settle their “unfinished beef.”
On July 4, 2001, Kobayashi shattered what people thought possible by scarfing down 50 hot dogs and buns at the Nathan’s Famous contest, twice the amount of the previous record holder. “It just wasn’t anything someone could even comprehend,” Shea said. For the next five years, he reigned as champion, dominating the field.
In doing so, Kobayashi transformed what had been a casual sideshow into a legitimate athletic endeavor. Sharply contrasting the stereotype, Kobayashi was a slim, fit competitor who rigorously trained so he could ingest what seemed like half his body weight, Shea said.
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Then came Chestnut who, in 2006, threatened to take Kobayashi’s crown but fell just short. Days before the 2007 contest, he told the New York Times he admired Kobayashi, who he admitted was the undisputed No. 1 eater in the world and the favorite. Despite having beaten the hot dog record at a different contest a month earlier, Chestnut said he wouldn’t be the top dog until he beat Kobayashi head-to-head at the world’s marquee eating competition.
“Getting the title at Coney Island is the biggest,” Chestnut told the Times that year. “Getting the record means a lot — it’s a wonderful record — but getting the Mustard Yellow Belt, that’s what it’s all for.”
It was another neck and neck competition that went down to the wire. When the clock hit zero, it was still too close to call as Chestnut and Kobayashi choked down the meat and bread. But after reviewing video, the judges determined Kobayashi had eaten 63 hot dogs and buns, Shea told the crowd as he announced his second-place finish.
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Then, Shea draped a U.S. flag around the neck of Chestnut, the first American to win since 1999.
“In first place, with 66 hot dogs and buns — Joooeeey Cheeestnuuut!” Shea roared into the microphone.
Chants of “Jo-ey! Jo-ey!” pulsed through the crowd.
Chestnut beat Kobayashi the next year and for a third time in 2009, creating a “huge rivalry” that grew their fan bases and elevated the sport, Shea said.
It ended in 2010 when Kobayashi stopped appearing at the annual Nathan’s contest because he had refused to sign a contract with MLE. He said the terms were too restrictive by preventing him from participating in non-MLE contests, CNN reported.
That paved the way for Chestnut to dominate, an opportunity he capitalized on. Chestnut has ruled over the Nathan’s Famous contests and set records for eating all manner of foods including poutine, pierogies, tamales, Twinkies, gumbo and grilled cheese sandwiches. In 2021, he set the record for hot dogs eaten in 10 minutes — 76 — in a competition in which the second-place finisher ate 50.
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But Chestnut has become synonymous with the Nathan’s Famous contest not just because he has dominated it, Shea said. He’s won over fans because he’s a likable, down-to-earth guy people can relate to. In 2022, when a protester came onto the stage and pushed him aside, Chestnut grabbed them by the neck and put them in a headlock, all while maintaining his grip on the hot dog he was eating.
“These are the kinds of super-dramatic moments that have solidified his position as an American folk hero, especially for young men,” Shea said.
“He’s just Joey Chestnut,” he said, “and people love him.”
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